


Invisible touch

by Beezarre (Dibee)



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/F, it'll evolve from small touches to more but still stay with a gen rating, just random bits of fluff to make up for the angst those two come with
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-09
Updated: 2017-05-14
Packaged: 2018-10-16 23:01:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 16,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10581285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dibee/pseuds/Beezarre
Summary: Kate and Osgood grew close through work, but over time the bond between them bloomed into something more, something that made them need the other's presence by their side, one touch at a time.





	1. Reaching out

**Author's Note:**

> Title from the Genesis song.

It had started simply enough. 

In the back of the car that took them to yet another crisis, Kate had left her hand fall between them, hand-width apart from Osgood’s, whose heart rate had gone up and stayed there. She would never admit it to anyone, not even Kate, least of all Kate, but her admiration and dedication to her had started to shift toward something a little less professional, and having that big a crush on your boss, finding her presence breathtaking when you had asthma, led her to go through her inhalers faster than usual.

Kate wasn’t looking at her, staring straight ahead, seemingly lost in thought, giving Osgood ample time to study her features, again, unnoticed. She was all the more surprised when she felt Kate’s fingers brushing hers. She froze, but Kate was still looking away. Osgood’s mind was reeling with questions, none of which she wanted answers to.

After a few seconds that felt like hours, their fingers were linked and Osgood realised with relief that her own palm wasn’t sweaty, and Kate’s skin was… something she probably didn’t want to think about too much.

Kate squeezed her hand, and she squeezed back, kick-starting her brain into full-on analytical mode. This was new. Kate had expressed concern for her before, reassured her with a gesture, a hint of a smile, when she had felt her assistant nervous or apprehensive. Osgood felt safe with her, emboldened even. Nothing bad could happen when you stood next to someone who solved alien incursions before breakfast and could face the Doctor with absolute confidence.

The crisis they were heading to wasn’t particularly out of the ordinary, it could lead to global catastrophe, so business as usual. Osgood looked at Kate a little more closely than she usually allowed herself to, and noticed the set jaw, the tensed shoulders, her other hand gripped on her phone, and she realised…

She hadn’t done this to reassure Osgood, she would have looked at her otherwise, and Osgood would have given her best impression of spontaneous combustion. The only reason she wouldn’t was... If she needed reassurance herself. Kate had taken to encouraging her to tag along outside the lab more and more lately, they worked close together and, Osgood realised that, maybe, to Kate, she was important too. Could it really be that?

She took a deep breath, looked at her and squeezed her hand again gently. Kate looked at her, surprised, seemingly about to say something, but just smiling instead, making it hard for Osgood to focus on anything else. She saw the exhaustion of a sleepless night, the apprehension of the upcoming confrontation, the weight of responsibilities, and hidden behind all that a softness that made her self-conscious, even more than usual that is. She couldn’t recall anyone ever looking at her like that. She wasn’t sure she could recall her own name in that moment.

A smile floated on Kate’s lips as she relaxed, Osgood was trying to remember to breathe, having to use her inhaler would break the moment, and she never wanted it to end.

It was interrupted anyway as Kate’s phone rang. She steeled herself -Osgood found it striking- and answered with her free hand. The call only took a few seconds. There was a pause than she looked at Osgood.

“They left!” Kate said in disbelief. “They just left!” 

Osgood smiled brightly.

“Too bad, I was thinking of using that paperwork as a pillow.” Kate joked. They both grinned. It was their usual kind of comfortable, when it was just the two of them and something fascinating. Osgood wasn’t sure what was fascinating about that situation, and she decided not to think about it too hard. 

Kate asked her about her latest project and they were back on familiar territory. Osgood reminded herself to keep any arm waving to one arm only, as her hand was still in Kate’s, or was it the other way around? She wasn’t sure anymore, and it didn’t matter.


	2. Shoulder rub

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Long days and late nights lead to tense shoulders.

It was late, so late it was almost early. In fact not even almost. Osgood had expected Kate to have gone home already. Kate had expected Osgood to have left. Both of them were workaholics, living for their work, rather than working for a living.

Osgood jumped when she heard the door of the lab open. It had a tendency to squeak, even more so when pushed softly, something no one in the team of bright scientists had thought of fixing. Osgood had been alone in the lab for some time, and she beamed up at Kate when she saw her come in, even if she looked as exhausted as she was. 

She frowned, it wasn’t usual for Kate to drop by like that. She had her coat, everything, so she was clearly on her way out. Was there something urgent? Her brain had kicked in, a beat too late, as it often did when Kate was too close, which was problematic considering they worked even more side by side than ever.

Kate walked slowly towards her without a word, smiling gently as she peered over her shoulder to see what she was working on.

She unexpectedly put her hands on Osgood shoulders, she could see how tense she was, how working all day bent over detailed blueprints had created knots she wanted to release. But she knew the simple gesture was the most she could allow herself.

Osgood froze for a second, relaxing just as Kate was about to remove her hands. It was distracting, and her train of thought had just come to an abrupt stop in front of a gigantic abyss.

“Osgood, you can finish this tomorrow, go and get some sleep.” Kate whispered gently. Osgood was glad she was wearing long sleeves as they hid the goosebumps her voice had just created.

Osgood stretched a bit, Kate’s hands still in place. Kate found the most obvious knot right under her palm and pressed gently. Osgood held her breath for a second before relaxing her shoulders.

“Thank you.” She said in a hushed voice.

“You’re welcome.” Kate replied gently. She turned the lamp on Osgood’s desk off and nudged her to her coat.

“Some cold air will do you good.” Kate said.

They walked out side by side, closer than they usually did, although none of them wanted to step aside. They fell into step as they tended to do lately. Their hands were brushing. 

After a while Osgood realised that it was hardly a coincidence, and almost caught Kate’s fingers a couple times. It was comfortable. It felt good. It made her heart beat a little faster, and when she mustered the courage to look towards Kate, she caught her looking at her. Osgood blushed and Kate looked away, but a second later when their eyes met again they were smiling. 

Osgood didn’t want the moment to end. But she also yearned for some sleep. She made sure her brain didn’t do any stupid association of ideas with those two thoughts.


	3. Protective instinct

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Feelings can be a minefield. Feelings in a minefield, however...

It wasn’t long until the next heart-stopping moment. They had had a bunch of things going bump in the night, and were now getting to the bits where things were going boom during the day. 

They had been called to a place that looked inconspicuous, which was generally a bad sign. There had been reports of strange activity, and no one at UNIT liked the word strange, because that meant they didn’t know what it was yet and could potentially be a threat to Earth, their lives, or just their leader’s mood, which was always bad news. 

Osgood had been sceptical. She had seen that kind of reading before, the numbers on the screen made sense, but there should have been something on the surface. There was nothing more than an empty field, the cows had been evacuated to greener pastures after having been checked one by one.

“Any ideas?” Kate’s voice seemed to boom in the surrounding silence, and made a couple scientists jump. She often had that effect on people, especially those under her command. Standing in the middle of a field at eight in the morning was not her idea of a good start of the day, especially having had to slalom between the heaps of manure hidden in the tall grass. Osgood was a pace behind to her left, and still frowning. Further afield, a scientist swore before shaking his boot. He hadn’t been too lucky. 

Osgood shouted as the readings on her screen spiked, but it was too late. There was a loud noise, and Kate instinctively turned toward Osgood in an attempt to shelter her, putting her arms around her in the process, trying not to topple them both in what turned out to be a minefield. 

“Are you alright?” Kate asked in a whisper, still very much hugging her assistant. Her voice had broken a little, and she blamed the shock. Osgood took a deep breath and immediately regretted it as she found herself almost swimming in her boss’ perfume, which she’d never gotten to smell this clearly. 

Kate let go a little bit to check on Osgood as she still hadn’t replied. Osgood nodded and Kate let go gently, lingering somewhat. Osgood immediately missed the warmth and gentle pressure. She fished out her inhaler, taking a puff with closed eyes in an attempt to focus again.

“Turns out there is something on the surface after all.” She said to Kate, who seemed to reconnect to reality.

“Yes, well, we got lucky. Looks like our unfortunate friend was only blown away, and not on another mine.”

“Still, we’ll have to find a way to trigger them all, and find out what it’s about.”

“I was thinking finding out first, and triggering later.” Kate smirked. Osgood squirmed before frowning.

“There’s something I don’t get though.” 

“What is it?” Kate asked, wondering whether she was going to ask about the accidental hug, that she herself would have trouble getting out of her mind any time soon. She hadn’t had time to think, and while she generally prided herself on her quick thinking, jumping on her assistant was not the kind of things she expected from her brain in a crisis.

“The cows! They should have been blown off!” Osgood exclaimed, bringing her back to reality.

“You’re right.” Kate frowned. “But we checked the cows, didn’t we, and they were perfectly normal.”

“With this technology, there might be some sort of sensor.” Osgood pointed out.

“You mean a ‘no cow’ sensor?” Kate said in disbelief.

“I was thinking more along the lines of a human trap.”

“Ah. That’s not good.” Kate looked at Osgood, who seemed to once again have something on her, brilliant, mind.

“No, not really.” Osgood smiled apologetically. “On the bright side, we won’t have to explain how a field got covered in minced beef.” Her smile brightened a bit, making Kate laugh.

“Well, let’s make sure there isn’t any minced human then!” 

She put her hand on Osgood’s lower back and guided them back to safety, putting Osgood’s sudden inability to walk in a straight line down to her being overly careful of where she stepped. 

The bulk of the equipment was in a van which operated as a makeshift lab. As Kate exchanged a few words with the scientists in charge of monitoring the site, Osgood kept thinking about what had happened earlier. Kate had all but pounced on her, very protectively, which was stupid, because Kate was vital to UNIT, and she wasn’t. 

Neither of them had let go immediately despite knowing the danger had passed. Osgood hadn’t dared moving, and despite the initial rush of awkwardness she felt too comfortable for, well, comfort. She had never been this close to Kate before, and she knew her brain would provide her with a slow-motion version of the moment on a loop for the foreseeable future. 

Kate hadn’t moved either though, and she had been the one with her arms around Osgood’s waist. Osgood had rarely felt this safe, despite having realised they were standing in the middle of a minefield.

She was brought back to reality by Kate who had handing her a cup of coffee. That was normally Osgood’s job; not that she minded, she really needed one. Their hands brushed as they exchanged the cup, and their eyes met long enough for Osgood to see some wavering in her boss’ eyes. She smiled at her and was met with an even larger smile.

“Do you think we’ll sort this through before lunch?” Kate asked, sounding way too casual for Osgood.

“We’re good, but we’re not that good.” Osgood pointed out, looking straight ahead.

“I saw this little pub in the village on the way up here, we might try that? I really don’t fancy a sandwich after this.” Kate said with a hint of hope in her voice. 

Osgood turned towards her, opened her mouth to say something, then changed her mind and nodded instead. If she hadn’t known better, she’d have thought Kate was nervous, but she didn’t think any Lethbridge-Stewart had ever experienced that concept. Osgood knew she would have trouble focusing on her work after that heroic hug and the prospect of having lunch with her.

They shared a smile as they walked in opposite directions, Kate heading for the comm center, ready to make at least half a dozen people very antsy, and Osgood sharing her results with the team. They each simultaneously stole a glance at the other a moment later, making them both quickly look away. If she hadn’t known better, Osgood would have thought that… No, that was just wishful thinking.


	4. Concussion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Words can be touching, sometimes.

It had been a rather tough month, and it wasn't likely to get any better even though there was so little time left of it. The lab was more populated than usual as a new project was to be unveiled. Kate was there, of course, and had been invited to push the conveniently big red button, because it had seemed like a sensible thing to do at the time. As it turned out, not so much. There was a flash, which was expected although slightly brighter than usual. And then there was an energy pulse, which was most definitely not supposed to happen. 

When they saw Kate fall, the scientists all thought their fates were sealed. If she was dead… they would be soon, their entire existences wiped from Earth’s memory. If she wasn’t… death would be a better alternative to the lecture they knew would follow. Osgood had jumped forward and confirmed that she was, in fact, just unconscious. She suspected Kate’s head had collided with the floor with a bit too much force in the process. That was still not good. Osgood was concerned about her, the rest of the lab was just concerned about everything that had ever been, was, and would ever be, as well as themselves, their projects, and the likelihood of ever seeing the light of day again.

When Kate came to, everyone could hear Osgood’s sigh of relief. The rest of the room was holding their breath, seemingly reducing the quantity of oxygen by a significant amount. Kate shot a dazed smile at Osgood who was looking down at her, and although she mumbled her words they all distinctly heard: “Am I in heaven yet?”. All those present in the room squirmed, and Osgood was glad they couldn’t see her face because it was slowly turning into a chameleon who had eaten a ripe beetroot. “Inhaler.” Kate added under her breath with the most wonderful smile Osgood had ever seen on her face. She reached in her pocket, her mind trying to process what was happening.

It was becoming harder and harder to be around Kate, Osgood had found, because of her own feelings, but also because of Kate’s tendency to, well, say and do things like that. It made her feel all gooey inside, and she wasn't sure what it meant. Well, she had a bit of an inkling but it was terrifying. Having a crush on your boss was one thing, one highly unpractical thing, but falling for her, now that was a really terrible idea. 

Kate was looking so... angelic herself. Her hair was splayed around her face like a halo and… No, Osgood told herself, that was not a path she wanted her thoughts to get lost on. Kate would have to be seen by a doctor because it had to be at least a concussion, Kate wouldn't normally say something like that, they all knew as much. Well, quite a few of the people present had suspected for a while that their boss had a crush on her assistant, who seemed to be the only one oblivious to it, despite having a quite large one on her herself. But they didn't like meddling, or rather they did but they didn't want to risk it with these two. 

Osgood was too intelligent to mess with, and Kate was, well, the boss, and not someone you wanted to get on the wrong side of, for whatever reason. She was a great boss, they all agreed, looked wonderful at any time of day, was generally fair, and never rash unless the situation asked for it. Considering their line of work she was an ideal boss. Or so they told themselves, because the large majority of them had started to fall for her a little as well. It was hard not to admire her.

No one could blame Osgood, who spent the large majority of her days, and some of her nights, in close proximity with her. Some of them wondered whether they didn't spend the entirety of their nights together, but were generally shushed by their colleagues rather quickly. The rumor mill was terribly effective in the Tower’s corridors despite appearances, and while there wasn't any raven inside, Kate seemed to know about everything, which made her like particularly scary all-knowing blond Raven Queen. Still, they loved her, but in that moment they were... a little concerned, to say the least. Plus they weren't too sure what to do next. The experiment was clearly a failure, and things had really gone south. It was the end of the day, so were they supposed to pack up after disposing of the mess? They thought the hospital might want to keep Kate overnight, there was no use in involving Unit doctors, really, there was nothing out of the ordinary, just a ‘regular’ blast.

Once the ambulance arrived, Kate was babbling, and neither of them could tell what about. Osgood was listening intently but didn't seem to blush, so it was definitely work related. Kate Lethbridge-Stewart wasn't known for slacking, and she was probably planning to use her night's rest to work on some overdue paperwork. They had a feeling Osgood would pretend not to have heard it and let the doctors do their jobs. She was in a position to almost-disobey Kate without consequences.

Once the ambulance had gone, Osgood came back towards them, told them to clean up, go home, and try again the next day. She hightailed it to Kate's office, and opened the door. Kate had given her a key some time ago, but it was always weird to be there when she wasn't, as if there was something missing, even though in itself the office was rather... well, average. Sure, there were a few things here and there that you wouldn't find anywhere else, but they were well hidden so as not to catch the eye of someone who didn’t know what they were, and Kate could reasonably invite people without risking them knowing too much. They did have mind wipers anyway!

She would have to take a closer look at the desk, Kate wanted a few things sorted out, papers she had just finished but needed sending. Osgood scanned the top layer and made several piles checking whether there was anything she could do herself. 

She was still at it when she heard her phone ring. She looked at it to find a text from Kate. “Concussion, staying overnight”. Osgood winced, that's what Kate had feared, and she had instructed her to get her something to do. Osgood knew that there was nothing she could bring that didn't require some sort of security clearance for those nearby. Well, she did as she was told and put aside a small pile of files she had been about to show her before the explosion. It felt awkward just going to the hospital to visit; although concussed Kate was... seriously cute, she had to admit, and definitely flirty, something that had led Osgood's stomach to do a couple back-flips. She could definitely be there in the morning, first thing, with coffee and work, back on regular track. Osgood wondered what Kate would say, if she would remember any of it, or perhaps pretend she didn't for both their sakes. Who knew.

Osgood tossed and turned for the vast majority of the night, Kate’s face floating at the edge of her consciousness as she attempted to get some sleep. Her boss wasn’t making it easy not to fall for her. Osgood wondered whether she realised that. She couldn’t believe Kate was doing it on purpose, she wasn’t a cruel person. Just a very formidable one she happened to work with almost incessantly. Osgood thought about what had happened again, and realised that, given where Kate had laid, there might have been a light right over Osgood’s head. That must have been it. She might have looked like an apparition of some kind, although Kate probably had better people to imagine in paradise than her geeky assistant. She promised herself never to mention it to Kate, and hoped Kate wouldn’t mention it again. Her apologising would make things even worse, really. She finally fell asleep, wrapped in her sheets, her mind going back to the unexpected hug in that field not long before. That wouldn’t help much, but it made her feel safe.

The next morning, she hurried even more than usual, made sure her bow-tie wasn’t crooked and headed to Kate’s favourite coffee shop, ordering her usual, to go, and made her way to the hospital, a pile of file precariously balanced under her right arm. The first patient releases would be a half hour later. She was led to the ward where her boss had been sent. She was early, and hoped she wouldn’t disturb her. 

As she stepped toward the curtain, she noticed movement. A lamp was still on, and she could see it casting shadows on the curtain. Someone was moving, it didn’t take her scientific brain very long to get a good idea of who it was. Kate was probably changing into her civilian clothes. Osgood couldn’t see any kind of detail but was already blushing. The idea itself, she knew, would keep her awake at night more than what had happened the previous day. 

After a moment, once she deduced Kate would have been putting her shoes on, she went to knock, before realising that curtains weren’t really conductive to knocking. Instead, she cleared her throat and said Kate’s name. She hadn’t talked very loudly, in fact it was barely more than a whisper, but she heard Kate answer, loud and clear, inviting her to come in. It took Osgood a few seconds to figure out which end of the curtain she had to tug on to get in and she looked a little flushed as she faced Kate. She had just remembered that, given that no one had gone to see her, she was in the previous day’s clothes. Kate seemed to follow her train of thought. 

“I have a change of clothes at the Tower, I can shower there.” She smiled up at Osgood who offered her coffee, and, once her hand was freed, righted the way she was holding the files, hoping they wouldn’t be too crumpled.

“What would I do without you!” Kate said, looking at her fondly. Osgood was partly hoping the earth would swallow her in that moment, because she was fairly sure her cheeks were now incandescent and were starting to consume the rest of her face.

“You probably wouldn’t be this addicted to caffeine.” Osgood pointed out. Kate laughed.

“You have a point, but it balances out the addiction to work.” She replied.

“Actually, I’d say it encourages it.” Osgood said, realising she might be out of line but it felt so comfortable she felt suddenly emboldened.

“With a work like ours, it’s hard not to throw ourselves into it, isn’t it?” Kate said, looking in Osgood’s eyes who gulped as discreetly as she could.

“We would be a lot less productive if we didn’t love it that much.” Osgood agreed, her voice breaking somewhat.

“Sit down.” Kate patted the bed next to her. “They won’t let me out for at least another ten minutes, and we’ll probably be on our feet most of the day already.” She sounded even more gentle than usual, and Osgood wondered whether the hospital shouldn’t keep her a bit longer. Not that she minded. On the contrary she was enjoying it, possibly a little too much. She didn’t point out the chair in front of them, either.

“You really are an angel, you know?” Kate said. Osgood could see a flicker of humour in her eyes, and she realised that she did indeed remember what she had said the previous day. She smiled at Kate, not sure what to answer to that. Not sure there was something to reply. Once her brain caught on, she opened her mouth, hoping she wouldn’t muck things up.

“You’re a good teacher.” She immediately pinched her lips, not quite regretting what she had said -she had meant it, -but wondering whether she should have. She saw Kate blush, something she never thought she could lead her to do. 

They looked at one another for a long time, a lot of things passing between them without really realising it. Had it happened a week earlier, Osgood was pretty sure she would have melted into a puddle of suspicious goo, but now there she was, sitting on an hospital bed next to her criminally wonderful boss, lost in her beautiful eyes, trying to remember what it was she was supposed to do with herself. She snapped herself out of it first.

“Your coffee is getting cold.” Her voice sounded more shy than she had meant for it to.

Kate brought it to her lips, meeting her eyes again. The doctor pushing the curtain further startled them both and broke the moment. Kate beamed at him in an effort to convince him to please let her go, although she was in no hurry to leave the comfort of the moment she had shared with Osgood.

Once given the all clear, they headed back to the tower, Osgood leaving the files in the back seat while Kate downed her coffee, not wanting to stain Osgood’s car. They drove in comfortable silence, a smile growing on both their faces in reminiscence. 

An idea crept in Kate’s mind. She had to initiate it, because she knew Osgood would never dare. Now all she had to do was find a way to ask that wouldn’t send Osgood running for the hills. Although if she did she’d have to remind her to use her inhaler, which would no doubt not help matters. 

She sighed, making Osgood jump. She smiled at her and started thinking. She could outsmart most people she met, or at least push them in the right direction. Surely she could invite her assistant over without making a fool of herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is much longer than the previous ones, and it's not going to get any 'better'! I'm already working on the next chapter, which might end up as two chapters at this stage, which means that there are at least two (well, three) chapters thought-through for you to look forward to! The cuteness level will rise steadily throughout!  
> Thank you for reading!


	5. Touchy subject

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part one of a chapter I had to cut so it wouldn't get too big. (Also not to make you wait too long. I haven't finished writing part two, but I have a fairly good idea where it's going. Fluff ahead!)

Osgood had noticed that Kate had started hovering around her, without actually saying anything. She was barely paying any attention to most of what Osgood had been saying. Osgood wondered whether her behaviour in the hospital had something to do with it. She had probably gone too far, but Kate had not seemed this fazed by it. Perhaps she was regretting those moments now that she felt better. Osgood felt awkward every time she saw Kate, even though she still made her feel special, and loved. Osgood had noticed that look, like… fondness. It felt like she was the only one on the receiving end of it, and, if anything, it made her more unsure.

When Kate appeared in the lab during a lunch break, Osgood did not think much of it. Kate dropped a sandwich on her desk; her favourite, she noticed. She pointed out that her brain could not be powered on inspiration alone. Osgood looked up, brows furrowed. That was her lines, her role!

Kate looked a bit sheepish. She had a look around for a stool that was not covered in anything suspicious and sat next to Osgood. That way, she was at the same level as her, making Osgood even more uncomfortable. Kate seemed to think about something, and some more, before muttering something inaudible. She faced Osgood, looked her in the eye, and cursed her sudden inability to make proper sentences despite having prepared what she was about to say for pretty much the entire week.

“I wanted to ask… You mentioned something about X-files the other day.” She started, trying very hard to repress her sudden need to face-palm. Osgood did not react, seemingly frozen, leading Kate to have to figure out what to say next. Well, she knew what she wanted to say. Just not how to say it.

“I feel like I’m really missing something, and…” Kate paused, there was no nice way of putting it without making Osgood drop from her stool, was there? “Would you agree to help?” Kate finished. That had not been so hard! Kate knew she looked sheepish. Osgood looked shocked. Kate hoped the whole thing could be dealt with before anyone came in.

“S-s-sure!” Osgood replied. “I… have all the dvds, although that’s a LOT of material. Roughly 160 hours, for the tv show alone. Then there’s the movies.” She pointed out, trying to focus on facts rather than the fact that her boss had actually asked her for … help? To watch a tv-show? Well, one of her favourites, but still.

“Where would you say the logical place to start is?” Kate asked, genuinely curious.

“Well, probably the beginning? I think you’ll like it.” Osgood smiled, blushing a bit. Kate smiled back.

“Watch it with me?” Kate asked. She had meant to sound a little less hesitant about it, and she knew she probably looked as sheepish as she ever had now, but damn if she was not going to try it.

Osgood had apparently not expected it. Her analytical brain knew that Kate did not mean work. Meaning Kate wanted to spend time with her outside of work. And surely she could actually watch the show without a living commentary. Her brain was reeling and she realised she had not answered when Kate’s face fell somewhat. She rushed her answer and immediately regretted it.

“Sure! Just tell me where and when!” She had been enthusiastic, and she could tell the surprise on Kate’s face. Kate had not really thought that far. Or rather, she had, but did not want to be too forward, although it was already a little late for that.

“Well, unless any major crisis happens in the next few hours… we could start tonight?” She suggested. They had tomorrow off, so it did not matter if they stayed up late.

Osgood’s brain was short circuiting. Start meant more than once. And she would never manage to be ready by then. The dvds were at her place, but her flat was in no state to receive anyone, let alone Kate. She normally cleaned and reordered things regularly, but lately cleaning was all the had had the time, and energy, to do. Her seemingly random order of piles through her flat were not really conductive to welcoming company. She realised she had not replied. She nodded with a small smile. Kate grabbed the small notepad on Osgood’s desk.

“My address.” She said, handing it back. Osgood had been there before, but it was with UNIT cars, and while she had a great memory Kate did not want to risk her getting lost. Osgood took the paper and stared at it for a second.

“Thanks.”

“Chinese food okay?” Kate asked, no longer trusting herself to make full sentences.

Osgood nodded. Her brain, which was generally faster than most people could comprehend, seemed to have slowed down considerably. Kate nodded with a small smile, got up and was about to walk away when she pointed at the sandwich.

“Brain fuel.” She said before heading for the door. Osgood noticed there was a small spring in her step that made her heart beat a little faster. She also realised that staring at her boss’ legs was probably not good practice and stared at the sandwich instead. They were not supposed to eat in the lab, but Kate had brought it there for a reason. As she started eating she ran what had just happened through her brain.

Kate Lethbridge-Stewart had invited her over to watch X-files, while eating Chinese food. In her home. A space where she lived that was not work. She would be in her home, as a person rather than a UNIT member. She had not been there before, or just at the front door, having caught only a glimpse on the inside before Kate had appeared, generally a bit annoyed. She did not like being picked up, no matter the emergency.

Osgood sighed, took another bite of her sandwich, and forced herself to concentrate on her work. She had to finish on time, or she would ruin it all. She realised Kate had not said anything about time, well aware that planning anything when working at UNIT was near impossible. Osgood had started calculating roughly how long it would take her to drop by her flat, retrieve the dvds, the shortest route to Kate’s house, and how long she would spend in her car calming herself down before going to knock.

To her surprise the rest of the day went by in a flash. She had actually managed to immerse herself completely in her work, possibly as a mean to procrastinate the incoming anxiety, and no crisis of any kind had arisen. Nothing was about to explode, everyone seemed rather grateful for the opportunity of getting home and giving their loved ones a hug, be it a spouse or an axolotl.

Kate, on the other hand, had been antsy ever since she had left the lab. While she generally hated being stuck in her office doing paperwork for hours on end, she welcomed it now as it meant she did not have to be around people, let alone some who might be able to figure something was up. Every so often she looked up at the photograph of her father on her desk and sighed. He probably would not agree with what she was doing. But she knew she had a shot at some happy moments with someone she had come to like, more than like, and it would be worth it. She hoped it would be, because she needed it to be.

She wanted Osgood to relax. She always seemed to tense when she was around, at least initially, and Kate did not want that. Osgood had changed somehow, perhaps matured since she first arrived. She used to be extremely shy and introverted. She had found her place at UNIT, a place to express her passion, her genius, and watching her grow had been a privilege. Appreciating her more and more had been… a bit of a problem, but one that she welcomed in the end. Their job was lonely, and whenever she looked in Osgood’s eyes she saw the same thing she did when she looked in the mirror. A kind of sad longing for something more than science. Whatever happened, she would earn a friend, and that alone was worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading!


	6. Stepping into her space

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This update took a little bit longer than the previous ones, but I have three (3!) chapters lined up after this one!
> 
> This chapter is actually part 1 of a bigger chapter I had to cut into three parts for everyone's sake. I'll try and update part 2 and 3 tomorrow and the day after that. Warning though: copious fluff ahead!
> 
> Thanks to all of you who took the time to comment and leave kudos!! I hope you'll like what's coming!

Kate went to check on Osgood as she was about to leave. She wasn’t in the lab, and when Kate asked a member of her team he told her she had already gone. Kate wasn’t sure whether it was a good or a bad sign. Had Osgood been avoiding her, and changed her mind about her proposal, or had she wanted to prepare for their evening? She had better head home in case Osgood got there before she did.

There was no trace of Osgood when she arrived. She took a quick look around, looking for anything out of place that she could put right. She spent so little time at home at that point that she rarely had any occasion to make a mess. She checked that she had put the Chinese food menu on the counter, peered into her fridge and noticed a couple petri dishes that had once called themselves jam preserves and disposed of them. She checked her freezer, and realised that not having really spent an evening at home recently meant there was still plenty of ice cream there. Good.

She jumped when the heard the doorbell ring, and went to answer with a smile. Osgood was smiling excitedly, waving what appeared to be the box set of the first season. “The rest if in my car, I can leave it with you if you want, I don’t expect to watch them on my own any time soon.” She said.

Kate realised she still had her heels on and kicked them aside, looking around to locate her regular slippers: extremely fuzzy white slippers with bunny ears.

“Don’t judge.” She said to Osgood who was trying to repress a laugh. “You can keep your shoes on if you like.” She added, not wanting Osgood to feel uncomfortable. Osgood opted for socks. They had question marks on them, and Kate wondered how many questions were wandering in Osgood’s mind.

Kate was not sure what to do with herself. She hadn’t really thought that part out. In fact she had chosen to voluntarily not think too much about the whole thing. Improvisation in a crisis had always come naturally to her, and her brain was definitely classifying this situation as a crisis.

She took Osgood’s coat, showed her the living room in an unassuming manner. It wasn’t very homely, hadn’t been since she had been on her own. Still, to Osgood, it was so very Kate. If you looked closely, you could see science related trinkets everywhere, but they were discreet enough to blend in. It was as if she had set herself little reminders of her passion throughout her home life.

“Do you want something to drink?” Kate offered from the kitchen. Osgood followed her there, trying to think of an answer. She wasn’t really sure what the offer entailed, and didn’t trust herself while tipsy around Kate. In fact she didn’t really trust herself around Kate, but alcohol would be a particularly dangerous addition to the mix.

Osgood smiled, and hoped Kate would draw her own conclusion. Kate looked at her, thinking, before listing the possibilities. Osgood thought for a second, before going for the obvious answer: “You pick.” Kate smiled. That was not helping matters. She was tempted to go for Shiraz, but didn’t think that would really be wise, and went with tea instead. You couldn’t go wrong with tea.

“I have some Christmas tea if you’d like.” She offered tentatively. It was a bit late in the year for Christmas tea, or perhaps equally early, but she didn’t get around to having a relaxing cuppa that often so she still had plenty. Osgood nodded eagerly. Good, Kate thought. That’s good. Now, let’s focus on not making a mess of things.

It was so odd, seeing Osgood there, in her space. She could tell Osgood felt a bit awkward, hell she felt awkward too, but it just felt… right, somehow. When Kate handed her the mug Osgood seemed to snap out of a daydream and blushed, thanking her before smelling it appreciatively.

“I’m usually more of a gunpowder person, but it’s not really conductive to relaxing.” Kate said, trying to break the silence that was not entirely comfortable. Osgood was looking at her intently. Kate shot her a questioning look.

“It’s just… suits you, the gunpowder.” Osgood muttered before taking another sip. Kate smiled, not sure what to make of that.

Osgood was sitting on a stool, while Kate was still standing, the take out menu still untouched between them. Kate suddenly started giggling, a sound Osgood rarely had the chance to hear, waking a bunch of really energetic butterflies in her stomach.

“What is it?” Osgood asked, a smile growing on her face. It was clear Kate wasn’t laughing at her, there were little glimmers of mirth in her eyes.

“Do you… do you remember Christmas?” She started, giggling a little too much for carry on. Osgood nodded. They had spent it at work, again. The festive season attracted all kind of attention, some of which particularly unwanted.

“There was… someone… hung a mistletoe…” She let her sentence trail off. Osgood nodded again.

“Over the lab door, yes, I remember. Going through there was risky, either there was a line of people kissing, or you had to sneak while no one was there.” Osgood sighed in recollection.

“There was some over the door of my office, too.” Kate added with a short laugh. “On the inside. A lot of people made a face when they left my office, all day, and I couldn’t understand why. And when I was about to leave, I noticed it. I have no idea who put it there, because they’d have had to do it while I wasn’t there and have access to my office, but you’re the only one who fit that description.” Kate smiled. Her smile changed into something else, still soft, but inquisitive. “Wait, it wasn’t you, was it?”

Osgood shook her head vigorously. She remembered seeing the mistletoe and wondering whether Kate had put it there herself.

“Why didn’t you say anything, by the way?” Kate asked, puzzled.

“I… I thought maybe you’d have put it there yourself? As a joke, or to make people squirm?” Osgood offered, unsure. At the time she had just not wanted to risk pointing it out in case Kate had actually wanted to kiss her. Even a cheek kiss would have thrown her off her work for the rest of the day.

“We’ll just have to be on the lookout for impromptu festive cheer in the future I guess.” Kate said with a smile. This was nice, she thought. Really nice, in fact, she could get used to that. She realised. Well, no, she shouldn’t, but… she could. She toyed with the corner of the menu, trying to keep her eyes off Osgood.

“Do you want to order now, or wait a bit?” Kate asked. She was not sure herself.

“Maybe wait a bit?” Osgood suggested. Kate nodded.

“Alright, how do you want to do this?” Kate asked, taking a sip of her mug. She had put too much sugar in it, mostly because she had been distracted by Osgood at the time and had not been paying attention, but it was deliciously sweet. A bit like Osgood.

Osgood was a bit taken aback. It was Kate’s idea! It was Kate’s house! Given the lengths of the first few episodes, they could order after the first, and see when it arrived, pause to eat, resume afterward, preferably not in the middle of a pivotal scene…

Osgood realised she was thinking aloud when Kate gave her the look. The one that had been unsettling her. The soft, undivided attention of Kate Stewart was a rare and precious thing Osgood could only dream of. After a while of gazing at one another, Kate nodded, tilted her head towards the living room where Osgood had left her things so she would follow.

The couch could sit three people, with some space taken by cushions. Kate went straight to the far end, clearly out of habit, leaving Osgood to test her end of the couch and vow to never get up again lest her life was on the line.

“How do you not fall asleep on a sofa so comfortable?” Osgood asked lightly.

“Who says I don’t?” Kate replied with a throaty laugh. “Even when I’m not watching television, sometimes I just get home, drop my bag and shoes, and aim for the sofa in the dark.” She says with a smile, but there was a hint of self-pity in there as well. “Which accounts for the large array of bruises on my left calf”. She added, pointing at the coffee table, making Osgood laugh.

It was odd, picturing her boss, who was always so flawless in the way she dressed and behaved, letting it all go the moment she got home. She noticed she was a lot more comfortable than at work, but there was still that reserve she knew she was mirroring. Work still hung above their head, like a prickly mistletoe. It did explain the slippers though.

Osgood let out a small laugh. Kate frowned, and smiled when her assistant pointed at the offending piece of footwear. Kate put her feet on the edge of the coffee table, taunting Osgood who blushed a little. She reached out for the box set which was now right next to Kate’s feet.

“Anything I should know before we start?” Kate asked. Osgood thought for a moment.

“You might want to avoid sipping your tea when you think something is up.” Osgood said, picturing Kate near choking after a questionable alien mention.

“That bad?” Kate asked. Osgood nodded with a grin.

“Anything I should look out for?” Kate asked as Osgood put the first dvd in the player.

“Dana Scully. You’ll like her, I think.” Osgood grinned again. This was going to be fun!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fluffy-ish chapter is a mere taste of what's to come. I'm getting sappy, I think!


	7. I want to believe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, the second part of the originally gigantic chapter (compared to the others that is). Today: more fluff, with a side of noodles!

Osgood had taken the remote although she couldn’t remember why because it seemed like a really bold thing to do. She was about to let the dvd play when Kate’s phone rang. They exchanged a look; one of horror on Kate’s face, one of resignation on Osgood’s. Kate picked up without looking at the ID, Osgood noticed, and announced herself. Osgood saw her smile grow and relaxed a little. Definitely not work. She noticed Kate was relaxing as well, the tension easing from her shoulders, slumping a little in the couch. The conversation wasn’t long and Osgood found she had folded her legs under her, as she usually did at home. She wasn’t sure whether to move or not. She didn’t want to make herself too comfortable, didn’t want to make Kate regret having invited her over.

“My cousin! She went to Ukraine for a bit but just came back! We are the sole members of the family’s workaholic divorcees club!” Kate grinned.

“Alright, back to it.” She said, mirroring Osgood’s position. It wasn’t as easy for her, Osgood thought. Kate’s unending legs were a legend in UNIT collective memory. At least Osgood didn’t feel uncomfortable anymore. Their legs were facing outward, and Osgood had a feeling the couch was slowly dipping in the middle. She would have her chance to sit properly again once they ordered, she thought.

Kate watched Osgood as the episode started. She had a grin on her face, and whispered a couple lines she clearly knew by heart. Osgood turned toward her and Kate turned back toward the tv.

“You’re right, I like her.” Kate said after a while, smiling at something Scully said. Osgood smiled. “You know what else I like about shows like these?” Kate asked, looking at Osgood quickly.

“They sound so unbelievable no one actually imagines that something somewhat similar is going on.” Osgood said matter-of-factly.

“Yup. Sometimes I just wish we had more flying saucers. Somehow I think people would accept them more readily.” Kate chuckled. Osgood stretched a bit and realised that they had both slid towards the middle, their shoulders almost touching. Kate hadn’t noticed, or if she had hadn’t moved away, so Osgood thought it best not to point it out. Kate seemed really engrossed in the episode, and Osgood took the time to study her in that new light. She was relaxed, fully herself, and had a small smile playing at the edge of her lips that made her even cuter than usual.

After a while, Kate turned toward her, clearly aware that she had been staring. Osgood looked away but Kate extended a hand to reach her chin, made her look at her again. She let go and they focused on the screen instead, their hands meeting halfway as they kept doing of late. Osgood could feel Kate’s fingers stroking hers and it made her feel both good and nervous. She wasn’t sure what this was. It almost felt like a date. But it couldn’t be, could it.

Whatever it was, she would take advantage of every opportunity Kate gave her to be close to her. It was intoxicating, probably a bit dangerous, but Osgood didn’t care. A comfy couch, her favourite tv show, and her fantastic boss, that was her idea of a perfect evening. Osgood realised that there was something odd in that statement. Her idea of a perfect evening involved Kate, who was her boss, her superior, and of course they had been closer lately, but… but there was something there.

Kate failed to follow her earlier warning and snorted halfway through a gulp of tea at something a character said.

“I can’t believe I haven’t watched it before.” She said. She looked at Osgood who had a smile growing on her face. She spoke as the smile became a grin.

“I want to believe!” She said, with a twinkle in her eyes. They shared a smile before they focused on the screen again. Their shoulders were touching by now, and Osgood could have sworn Kate was leaning into her. She had a feeling it wasn’t intentional, and she was tempted to let go as well, but part of her was still worried. This might have been outside of work, Kate was still very much her boss, and she didn’t want to overstep. This was a really peculiar situation, and not one Osgood had much clue about.

By the end of the episode Osgood could feel Kate’s hair brushing past her neck. Her own was still pulled in a neat ponytail, and she was glad for that, although feeling Kate this close was making her almost uncomfortable in how comfortable it was.

They stopped to pick up the menu on the table. Kate had just stretched forward, and was making no attempt to move away from Osgood as she leaned back again. They looked at it together, their heads close, neither of them daring to look at the other, almost holding their breaths.

Making any kind of choice was proving difficult, and Kate decided to go for her usual. Osgood played it safe too. Kate asked Osgood to pass her the phone that was on a console her side of the sofa, and their arms and hands touched and lingered. Kate looked up at Osgood and noticed the little ‘o’ of surprise and how lost in thought she was. Osgood looked away quickly. She wasn’t pulling away. Kate didn’t want to be too forward, but she knew Osgood respected her authority too much to try anything.

Kate had been gently trying to hack that wall, letting Osgood in slowly, and every time was rewarded with a silver of hope. She hoped it wasn’t just wishful thinking, but the more time they spent together, the more Kate thought there was something there, she wasn’t imagining it. It also made her realise how much she wanted it, needed it. She was comfortable now. She was in her own space, but she realised that it might have been what made Osgood uncomfortable, precisely because it was Kate’s space. The show was nice though, Kate was enjoying it a lot more than anticipated; the fact that Osgood was there with her definitely had something to do with it.

She ordered and they decided to wait for the food rather than start another episode. Kate had no problem eating on the couch. She hadn’t done it in a while, mostly because she hadn’t had the time to combine both food and tv without falling asleep on the one or in front of the other in a while. She hoped Osgood would be okay with it. Given what they’d ordered it would be easy enough to navigate, she hoped.

In the meantime, they discussed the show. Osgood was really enthusiastic about it, and Kate loved her, and the show, even more for that. Osgood told her that she had found a thesis written on this show, and a couple others, on how it would never be possible to have that kind of organisation at any point, how the notion of aliens on earth was highly unlikely. Kate asked Osgood if she could see the paper.

“Thinking of hiring?” She said cheekily.

Kate laughed. That could be an amusing job interview. She playfully bumped Osgood’s shoulder, who retaliated. They shared a wide smile, Kate relaxing completely, sinking in the sofa with a small giggle, still looking at Osgood who smiled adoringly. Kate tugged at her sleeve and Osgood dissolved in the sofa next to her.

“You know we’ll never be able to get up again.” She pointed out, blushing somewhat.

“That’s fine with me.” Kate said before she could stop herself. She held her breath for a second. Osgood looked away, Kate winced, but Osgood shuffled slightly until her head rested on Kate’s shoulder.

“Comfy?” Kate asked. Osgood tensed a little before realising it wasn’t meant as a chastisement. She nodded.

“Thank you.” Kate whispered. “For this.” She added. She meant all of it, but let Osgood draw her own conclusions. She sensed her hesitation, before feeling Osgood’s hand in hers. Kate’s heart fluttered a bit, and she squeezed her hand, not quite believing her luck. This had been a gamble, the whole thing was, but she had read the situation right, and now she was afraid to mess it up.

She got up quickly as she heard the doorbell ring, leaving Osgood to crash on the sofa. She turned around to apologise but Osgood was smiling and she went to answer the door. She hoped Osgood wouldn’t insist on paying her share. For now she was still splayed on the sofa, seemingly deep in thought. Kate checked that there were chopsticks before heading for the sofa again. She looked down at Osgood who reached out for her.

“I’ll never manage to get up on my own.” She said, blushing. Kate put the food on the table before hoisting her up, her hands lingering, as well as her eyes.

She sat down again, putting some distance again between her and Osgood, who suddenly seemed uncomfortable. She handed her a napkin and her chopsticks before sorting through the food.

“Are you alright with chopsticks?” Kate asked, realising that she could offer a fork.

Osgood nodded.

“Alright, but don’t mock my technique. You might want to head for the other end of the sofa before I poke your eye out.” Kate warned her playfully. Osgood scooted a tiny bit further, reassured.

She waited for Kate to start eating to do so, wanting to see just what she meant. She laughed the second she saw how Kate was using the chopsticks. It was as undignified as you could possibly manage, highly inefficient, and plain ridiculous. Osgood put her food on the table and scooted closer. She reached for Kate’s hand. The chopsticks were halfway to her open mouth, but the noodles had long since slid back into the container. Osgood was half leaning on her, and trying to get Kate’s fingers where they should be on the wooden sticks. Kate was watching her and paying absolutely no attention to her attempt to save her time and face.

“You’re not paying attention.” Osgood chastised her. Kate shot her an apologetic smile. Still, she was holding the chopsticks correctly now. Osgood held hers in her hand and explained how they were meant to be used, and this time Kate seemed to register the information. Osgood invited her to try. Kate stared in disbelief as she managed to hoist a proper mouthful up from the cup. She shot a victorious grin at Osgood. Osgood scooted even closer now that she knew her glasses would not get involuntarily shattered by an overeager noodle-eater. She reached for the remote she had left on the cushions and started the dvd again, starting the second episode. This was going great so far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The third part of this three-parter chapter should be up tomorrow! (or the day after that depending on timezones, I guess!)  
> It will be... sweet, that's all I'm saying!!


	8. A taste of sweetness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here is the third and final part of that longer chapter (the next will most likely be quite long as well). This time, even more fluff, sweetness, the lot! I've become a bit of a sap, and I blame them!  
> I'm already working on the next chapter, it shouldn't take too long ;)  
> Thanks to all those reading and commenting! (I hope you won't die from over-fluffiness!)

Osgood had wondered what it would be like, spending an evening with Kate, watching X-files of all things. She had caught her smiling as she practically recited some dialogue, excitedly pointing at exchanges she particularly loved. She had told Kate to look out for Scully partly because the character reminded her of Kate, in a way. She looked good, too, and that’s something neither of them had mentioned but she was pretty sure Kate had noticed after the motel scene.

It was comfortable, and by now Osgood had noticed that Kate had definitely not meant for this to be work related. Lingering gazes, occasional touching, even leaning into each other, it was nice, more than nice, and Osgood wasn’t sure what to make of it. As they started the second episode, Kate still careful of the way she held her chopsticks, Osgood chose to focus on her food, to taste it and not make a mess of it, but mostly to block out the presence of her boss, her… friend? by her side.

She knew the episode, muttered some of the lines in between mouthfuls. Every so often, she saw Kate turning towards her, almost proudly showing her her new chopstick-holding skills, making her giggle. She would have to make a note of the place, because those noodles were really good. Osgood had kept to her usual, and suspected Kate wouldn’t let her pay. She wasn’t even sure how to offer. Maybe the next day?

Being this close to Kate was intoxicating, and every so often she felt as if she just couldn’t form any reasonable sentence, not without looking desperate for more. She had never been a tactile person, but just having Kate’s arm against hers made her feel lightheaded. One day, Osgood knew, one day Kate would probably end up hugging her, and she would die a happy death. For now, she reveled in the way Kate looked at her, at how it made her feel, at how Kate blushed slightly if she so much as dared look back with half the intensity. There was something between them, but Osgood was still waiting for Kate’s lead, not just because she trusted her implicitly, but because she had no idea where the limit was and she didn’t want to find out by stepping over it.

Still, she thought, the idea of them being friends made her feel a bit giddy. What if she had a crush, just being there together was nice, fun, if a little too intense for Osgood’s sake.

She noticed Kate was a little engrossed in the show, her chopsticks in the air with a large amount of noodles hanging off them, a smile on her lips. Osgood nudged her slightly and Kate’s hand relaxed, the noodles sliding back in the container.

“Hey, I was doing good!” Kate replied, pouting. Osgood giggled.

“If it’s distracting you we can pause.” Osgood pointed out, attempting to be helpful.

“It’s just Scully distracting me, you should definitely have warned me a bit more!” Kate mock scowled her, making Osgood grin.

“She’s pretty kickass, and attractive, isn’t she?” Osgood said, somewhat innocently. Kate nodded, munching on her noodles. “She most definitely reminds me of you.” Osgood said, thinking it was now or never. Kate’s eyes grew bigger, her jaw froze, Osgood was about to apologise when she noticed Kate blushing like she had never seen. She grinned instead. It took Kate a moment to process the information, and the noodles.

“Thank you.” She whispered, almost embarrassed. Osgood shot her the biggest smile she could muster and Kate leaned against her shoulder again.

“This is nice.” Kate wanted to say. She was afraid of the words, and just did her best to test the waters. Osgood… had she been hitting on her? In any case, it had worked. And if anything comforted Kate in the idea that Osgood did have a thing for her. And she wasn’t running away. By the end of the episode, despite their need to pause to watch the screen or one another, they had finished what they had ordered and Kate got up, gesturing for Osgood to follow her.

“Ice cream?” Kate suggested as they reached the kitchen. Osgood didn’t say anything, but didn’t need to. Kate didn’t have that much variety, she knew what she was about, listed her choices, and brushed off Osgood’s attempt to make her choose first.

Osgood went for chocolate, a good choice Kate agreed, and Kate ended up choosing a tub she had forgotten she even had, a mix of nuts and caramel that promised a tiny bit of change and more than her usual share of sweetness. A bit like Osgood.

She found two sturdy spoons and headed back to the sofa. They didn’t even try to sit apart this time, and leaned against one another as they started eating. A few spoonful in, Kate nudged Osgood and extended her spoon with a large serving of ice cream.

“You need to try this! It’s really good!” She said. Osgood’s brain registered something odd, filed it for later, and tasted the ice cream. It was, indeed, really good. She nodded as she tasted it, and the smile on Kate’s face was even sweeter than the ice cream. They were still looking in each other’s eyes when Osgood felt a pressure against her hand, and spied Kate’s attempt at stealing a spoon worth of chocolate ice cream. She extended the tub for easier access and stole some of Kate’s in retaliation.

They were only vaguely paying attention to the screen by then, and not entirely focusing on their ice cream either. Osgood saw Kate’s eyes travel to her eyes and lips, and licked them thinking she might have left some ice cream there, but she soon realised that, if anything, it had made Kate’s stare more intense. Oh.

Osgood felt herself blush and mirrored Kate’s staring pattern. She could tell Kate was leaning closer, ever so slightly, possibly not even knowingly, and Osgood did the same, memorising where each of their ice cream tubs were located to avoid any cold sticky disaster before Kate closed the space between them. Any thought of ice cream left her mind the second she felt Kate’s lips on hers. She brought her free hand to Kate’s cheek, and opened her eyes. She had not been entirely ready to the intensity of Kate’s eyes, and her slight moan led to a deeper kiss, the caramel and chocolate tastes on their tongues reminded them of the tubs that they quickly discarded behind them on the couch. Kate moved slightly and slid her arms around Osgood’s waist, pulling her closer. Osgood’s hands were framing Kate’s face, Kate’s hair brushing her fingertips.

When they broke the kiss, Kate gently put a stray strand of Osgood’s hair behind her ear.

“Wow.” Osgood whispered. She only realised she had said it out loud when she noticed a slight blush on Kate’s cheeks.

“You’re not bad yourself.” Kate replied. Osgood smiled. A loud noise coming from the tv made them turn.

“I think we might need to start this one over.” Kate pointed out.

“We might want to finish the ice cream first.” Osgood replied.

“Fair point.”

They paused the dvd, sat a bit more apart, each of them immediately missing the contact, and placed both tubs between them. Every so often, they would offer their spoon to the other, exchanging looks that were as many reminders of the earlier kiss.

Once they were done, Kate pulled out a plaid to cover them, and they started the next episode, leaning a little more against each other with each passing moment. Their hands were linked, fingers occasionally grazing the other’s skin. They laughed and sighed together at regular intervals. They let the dvd run and watched the next episode with the same ease in their companionship. Kate felt Osgood leaning more and more into her and progressively shifted so they were both more comfortable. She realised half way through the episode that Osgood had fallen asleep, right there, on her shoulder. She moved a bit more so she could see her properly, the screen reflecting off her glasses so it looked like a dream of hers.

Kate didn’t want to risk waking her up. She looked so peaceful, and there was a small smile on her lips, her hand warm in hers. She placed a light kiss on the top of her head and closed her eyes, knowing that the combination of a rather long day, a nice meal, a relatively comfortable position and good company would help her fall asleep faster than usual. She could smell Osgood’s perfume, possibly just her shampoo, and it felt comforting. She didn’t even get to see the end of the episode.

It took Osgood a moment to realise where she was as she woke up. Comfortably nestled against Kate, the dvd’s menu playing on a loop, she realised she had fallen asleep at some point during the last episode. She wondered whether Kate had noticed before she heard the even breathing and felt the way their weight balanced each other so they wouldn’t fall one way or the other. Kate had noticed, made sure she was comfortable, and fallen asleep herself.

Osgood couldn’t see much given their position, but she could spy the rise and fall of a strand of hair, the profile she knew so well, a small smile that warmed her heart, and Kate’s hand clasped around hers. She sighed gently and let go. Maybe she could sleep just a little longer. She didn’t want the magic to end, and that evening had truly been magic. The kiss had felt out of this world, in a non threatening way, and the very idea of being nestled against Kate on her couch… She was most definitely not there as an employee, of that she was certain now as if there hadn’t been enough hints before. She was there as a friend, and possibly more than that. She liked the idea of Kate seeing her that way, although it made her scared, of letting her down, of letting herself down, and just…

One more breath and she was asleep again, their breathing in sync, peaceful, wrapped in a moment almost out of time.


	9. Home is where the heart is

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the first part of another chapter I had to chop in three. As you can see, I went for a good old trope!  
> I apologise in advance for the feels the angst in this chapter may cause! I promise there's fluff, and more fluff coming later as well!  
> (Please forgive the cheesy title, I just had to!)  
> Thank you all for your comments, you're wonderful!!

They hadn’t met outside of work since their evening together but there was no tension between them. They walked closer than before and understood one another in fewer words than they used to, unnerving quite a few scientists in the process. Some people had their doubts, some had even been bold enough to bet on it, counting on the fact that Kate might have turned soft. Those who refused to bet had pointed out that Osgood had gotten somewhat tougher, and that the combination of their skills was a sure way of being ‘accidentally’ left behind in a dungeon.

Kate got the call as she and Osgood sat on the bench overlooking the ravens, nibbling on handmade sandwiches. Osgood had made cookies. Kate had made dessert a few days earlier. They were keen on making it a habit.

Kate frowned when she got the call. It was a courtesy call from a less ominous branch of UNIT. A suspicious device had been found, and several blocks around it had been evacuated and locked for at least a day. Kate’s house was relatively close to where the device had been found, although there was no reason to believe there was any kind of correlation.

“What am I supposed to do?” She asked, a tinge of anger and frustration in her voice.

“I’m sorry, Ma’am. I just wanted to contact you directly once we realised.” Her interlocutor sounded genuinely sorry, and was probably happy not to see the glare Kate shot the ravens who looked like they were mocking her.

“Thank you.” She answered curtly, and hung up. Osgood had stopped eating mid bite and was looking at her, concerned.

“Looks like I’ll have a good excuse to sleep at work tonight.” She groaned. Osgood’s eyebrows shot up as she swallowed her mouthful of tuna sandwich.

“My house is in a locked perimeter.” She explained with a huff. Osgood smiled, then blushed a bit.

“You can come to my place.” She offered tentatively. “I have the space.” She pointed out. On top of her own bed, she had a couch which was comfortable enough, although no match to Kate’s. She would leave the bed to Kate of course, but she realised that saying so right away might make Kate refuse straight out.

Kate’s mouth formed a little ‘o’ of surprise. She was about to close it, when she heard herself say. “Of course, if you don’t mind.” Osgood beamed at her and Kate didn’t have it in her to backtrack.

“Of all the reasons why I keep three changes of clothes at all times, this is not one I thought I would come across.” Kate laughed wholeheartedly, unable to stay mad around Osgood when she had such a grin on her face. She had one in the boot of her car, one in her office, and one in the decontamination area. So far, she had never had to use all three in the same day, and she hoped to keep it that way.

They went back to work and didn’t think about it until it was time to leave. Or so they would tell anyone who asked. Osgood kept mentally going through her flat, wondering what she might have forgotten to tidy. Kate realised she hadn’t asked what kind of bedding was available, fearing that Osgood might offer her her own bed. They had, in a way, slept together before, on the sofa during their failed marathon, but it was something else entirely. It had been spontaneous, in an accidental way. To voluntarily share a bed would definitely blur a line Kate knew she had been dancing around for a long time.

Contrarily to what some of her employees seemed to believe, and she knew about it, she didn’t have ‘the hots’ for Osgood. She had no intention to seduce her into something she wasn’t comfortable with. All she wanted was to spend time with her. And maybe a hug. Or another kiss. Or both. She wasn’t sure whether the betting pool would be able to grasp that concept.

The idea of seeing Osgood in her own space thrilled her and terrified her. She was afraid of doing the wrong thing, and overstepping somehow. She realised she was daydreaming when she stared at the clock and at the paperwork she had been working on, and it had been half an hour since she had last filled anything. She sighed. She was about to get up to get a well deserved coffee when the door opened. Osgood came in as she had taken to doing, in a completely natural way, giving her a warm cup and keeping one for herself.

“Thanks. One day, you’ll have to tell me how you know when I need coffee!” Kate said, teasing gently.

“It’s not very hard.” Osgood blushed slightly. “You always do.” She grinned tentatively. Kate laughed

“Still, you’re always here when I need you most.” Kate said, looking her in the eye, realising too late that her statement held a much deeper meaning than she had thought about. And yet it was absolutely true.

Osgood’s eyes didn’t leave hers. Kate could see something floating there. Doubt, but also something so soft it made her smile. They spent a long time locked in the impromptu staring match until Osgood looked down, avoiding Kate’s eyes as she whispered. “So are you.”

Kate had never wanted to kiss her more than she did in that moment. But she couldn’t, for so many reasons. She reached across her desk, her hand under Osgood’s chin until she looked up. There was more doubt in her eyes, before a wave of affection took over that almost knocked Kate off her chair. She knew Osgood would see something similar in her own eyes. Her phone rang, breaking the moment. Osgood didn’t leave, sipping on her coffee as Kate replied in short clipped sentences. She took a sip as soon as it was over.

“Paperwork.” She grunted.

“I have my share too.” Osgood sighed.

“This is why I have a love-hate relationship with slow days.”

“But if we put more energy in the paperwork now, we won’t have to cram the rest between two crisis.”

“Osgood, there’ll always be more.” Kate chuckled.

“Yes, there will, be comparatively less.”

“Still too much.”

“Kate, you’re a scientist, you know paperwork doesn’t spawn on its own.”

“Say that to my in tray!” Kate mock shouted.

“I am responsible for half of your in tray.” Osgood pointed out.

“Exactly.” Kate grinned. She took a sip of her coffee, glad she made Osgood smile.

“Back to work miss Osgood, you wouldn’t want that in tray to empty itself too quickly, would you.” Kate said fondly. Osgood pretended to sigh, shot her a large smile and left. Kate focused on the paperwork again. Osgood had a point. The more got done now, the less there should be later.

She immersed herself in the forms until she reached out for her cup and realised that it was half empty, and ice cold. She swore under her breath and took a look at the time. Another half hour to go. She looked at the pile of forms. If she focused well enough she could manage half of those by then. She knew she could count on Osgood to dig her out of the pile of paperwork when it was time to leave.

Osgood appeared, like clockwork, and Kate had tackled even more than she had hoped.

“Wow!” Osgood exclaimed. Kate shot her a victorious grin. “You say I’m good at pep talks, but I don’t think I’m that good.” She joked. Kate realised that she would never have even dared say that just a few months back, and now there they were, the distance between them thinner than ever, at ease and complementary whatever they did.

“Does it mean I have less in my in tray than I did before?” Kate asked, hopeful. Osgood looked at the pile in her arms, then at Kate.

“Afraid not.” She said. “Most of those don’t need much of your attention though. I put them in order of importance and necessary focus.” Osgood explained. Kate nodded, thankful.

“Alright, let’s go. I swear if I have to sign one more thing today…” Kate didn’t finish her sentence. Osgood was already laughing.

Osgood gave her her address and they left separately.

Osgood was waiting for her at the door of the building. Kate had slung her overnight bag over her shoulder and Osgood enjoyed the ease of her posture. Kate was often less than traditional in the way she moved and stood in professional situations, mostly as a way to stick it to the bosses, Osgood suspected. But seeing her like this…

Osgood lived on the fourth floor, and had heard too many horror stories about elevators while working at UNIT that she preferred to take the stairs. She let Kate in first, and started worrying her lower lip, awaiting Kate’s reaction.

Kate smiled the second she crossed the threshold. The place was so… Osgood! A mix of science, science fiction, and order. Kate left her bag by the door and let Osgood take her coat. She immediately felt at ease, and Osgood relaxed too, moving in the familiar space in a way Kate had never seen her do, even in the lab, which was very much her lab.

The flat was small, and packed with this and that, but it felt comfortable to Kate. It felt lived in, which is more than she could say of her own house. Kate realised she had been daydreaming again when Osgood extended a cup of coffee.

“Thanks. You really made this place your own.” Kate said with a sincere smile. Osgood blushed somewhat.

“I don’t spend much time here.” Osgood said. Kate could hear an unsaid ‘anymore.’

“That’s the danger, isn’t it. Living for the work, living in the work, making work our home, and coming home to a space we don’t really live in anymore.” Kate said. It sounded more dire than she had meant, but Osgood nodded.

“I feel rather guilty about this, actually.” Kate started. “Especially for you, Osgood.” She continued, ignoring the frown on her face. “I push everyone a lot, way too much, I think, most days. I’ve always been very demanding of myself, and I have grown in the bad habit of dragging everyone who works for me along.” She finished, sheepishly. Osgood shook her head wildly.

“No! No, Kate, they, we, follow you because we love what we do. Science leads. You lead us and we all trust you to know where we’re going. Don’t ever forget that.” Osgood said, lively, taking a step closer until there was little space between them. “Unit requires a lot of sacrifices, but you can be sure that every single person under your command is more than ready for that. We are all here because we want to be.” She added. She saw how touched Kate was at her words, and it hurt to see it, because she realised how much guilt Kate had to bear.

“We trust you, Kate. And you’ve never failed us. You never will.” She said. She could see tears at the corner of Kate’s eyes, but she wasn’t done, not yet. “Unit would be nothing without you. You are Unit, and you unite us. Don’t let that be a weight on your shoulders. We have your back.” Osgood finished. Kate had put her mug down, not trusting her hands anymore, and Osgood did the same, cupping Kate’s face with her hands and wiping the stray tears away with her thumbs.

“You are a fantastic person, Kate. And I will personally poison the coffee of whoever says otherwise with an untraceable substance and leave them to the ravens.” Osgood said. Kate was torn between blinking back tears and smiling.

Osgood slowly let go. Kate turned her head to kiss the palm of one of her hands. Osgood was about to turn away when Kate found her hands and entwined their fingers.

“Osgood….” Her voice broke. “Unit would be nothing without you. I would be nothing without you.” She finished, her voice a mere whisper. Kate wasn’t very good at feelings. Not enough science, too many variables. She was a lot like Osgood in that department.

She inched forward gently and Osgood met her halfway. Their hands separated. Osgood’s went up to Kate’s neck, Kate’s around Osgood’s waist as if afraid she might vanish from one moment to the next.

The kiss was slow, gentle, and didn’t last. Osgood pulled away first, kissing Kate’s cheek before going into the kitchen side of the flat. Kate followed her, bringing their coffees along. She stood just behind Osgood who leaned back a little. It was comfortable, and, if anything, the moment they had just shared unveiled a whole new level of ease between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next part is already written but I'll probably wait a few days to post it. (Because I'm evil/want to make sure it's ready.)  
> I can promise more fluff, some fun, and a tiny bit of angst!


	10. The pineapple ultimatum

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are again! The second part, in which... well, there is fluff. A teeny bit of angst. And a whole lot of things that completely got out of my hand and ended up needing to be a chapter of their own! (All I wanted was to keep them fed, but by the end of this chapter they haven't even started eating yet!)
> 
> The third part is mostly almost ready and will be up in a few days ;)
> 
> Minnie is a reference to a well known fandom (and indirectly to my 'Raining, Cat, and Dog' fic, that I accidentally abandoned a while back)
> 
> Thank you for your comments!

They hovered in the kitchen in an awkward slow dance. The kitchen wasn’t that big and they essentially walked in circles around one another, avoiding the other’s eyes. After a while Osgood stopped, laughing lightly as she looked up at Kate who met her eyes and beckoned her closer. They were in the centre of the room and easily fell into a simple embrace.

Not so long before, Osgood would probably have hyperventilated at the very thought of hugging, and being hugged by, Kate, but now… It felt special. Not entirely comfortable, because none of them really knew where they stood, but neither of them wanted to step away either. They weren’t looking at one another, grateful that the other couldn’t read their face.

“Pizza?” Osgood whispered in the crook of Kate’s neck.

“Sounds good.”

“Suggestions?”

“Hawaiian?”

“No!” Osgood took a step back, looking at Kate in horror. “Pineapple is not an appropriate pizza topping!” Kate laughed at how offended Osgood sounded.

“Have you ever tried it?” She asked. Osgood shook her head.

“Well, you’re a scientist, you should try it, in the name of science.” Kate teased. Osgood pursed her lips, thinking for a moment.

“Living dangerously.” She muttered. “I’m used to that with UNIT, but I didn’t think…”

“You didn’t think what?” Kate asked, her voice low, a smile on her face, taking a step closer so they were breathing the same air again, Osgood’s hands automatically resting on her waist.

“You being adventurous outside of work? You garden, I’d have thought you were true to regular food combinations.” Osgood replied quickly, feeling like she was put on the spot. Kate laughed.

“The first time I ordered it was to spite my kids.” She said, smiling in recollection. “But we all ended up loving it, so…” Kate smirked. “And I’m sure you’ve tasted more questionable things than pineapple on pizza.” She added gently.

“That ice cream was kind of daring.” Osgood answered, her voice a mere whisper. They shared a look, the memory still fresh in their minds.

They jumped when they heard mewing. Osgood turned around, facing the small kitten atop her sofa.

“Minnie! You’re not supposed to be here!” She sighed. “She must have gotten in when we came in.” She said to Kate, scratching the small feline behind the ears, earning herself a loud purr. It seemed to have a glasses-like pattern around its eyes.

“Could you open the door please? She’s a wiggly one.” Osgood asked. “I’ll just be a second, Mr Black next door is probably in, she wouldn’t have stayed out long without mewing to get in.”

Kate looked at Osgood petting and talking gently to the small kitten and couldn’t help the big smile on her face. It was just adorable. She heard the neighbour answer and the cat changing hands with a sad meowing sound.

Osgood came back to find Kate looking at her with a smirk.

“What?”

“You’re a natural with cats!” Kate exclaimed.

“Had four growing up.” Osgood explained.

“Ouch. Allergies okay?”

“Had to get desensitised. Repeatedly. Worth it though!” She grinned.

“Never thought of getting one yourself?” Kate asked.

“Have you?” Osgood countered.

“Fair point. I’m more of a dog person though.”

“I could have guessed that.” Osgood said. Kate didn’t challenge it. There were many things Osgood seemed to be able to guess about her, other than her feelings, clearly. “Anyway, I’ll agree to hawaiian on one condition.” Osgood threatened.

“What is it?” Kate squinted suspiciously.

“You agree to let me sleep on the sofa.” Osgood said pointedly. She knew it was the only way to make Kate agree, and she had to try. Kate pouted.

“But…” She tried.

“No but! Let’s call it the pineapple ultimatum.” Osgood said with a smile. Kate glared at her in the sweetest way possible.

“You don’t need to do this, you know.” She said seriously.

“I want to.” Osgood insisted. She had spent part of the afternoon trying to remember whether anything was out of place in her room. She would change the sheets quickly and take a quick look around. It would be weird, she knew, picturing Kate sleeping there, and probably having her perfume on her pillow still the next day. She wasn’t entirely averse to the idea though.

Osgood had expected Kate to try to fight her on it, but clearly she really wanted to introduce Osgood to the unholy pineapple combination.

“I’ll order now, for, let’s say half an hour? It’s a five minute walk from here, so it’s simpler to just collect it.” Osgood explained. She could use some fresh air, too. Having Kate in her space was… odd. She knew her way around her flat, but now she wasn’t sure where to go.

The call didn’t take long, and Osgood could see Kate taking a closer look around, smiling more and more. Her attention was caught by a large mineral collection.

“That’s impressive.” Kate said. “Now I understand why you jump on every occasion to study rocks specifically. I mean I know it’s not your speciality, but it makes more sense now.” Kate smiled. Osgood blushed.

She left Kate to peer further in the well organised collection and went into her room to change the sheets. She took a look around and caught a stray pair of mismatched socks. That explained a lot. She made the bed military style, in a way that felt safe in its logic. She hoped Kate wouldn’t mind, although she suspected she was familiar with it. They were civilians but being around military units often enough had sometimes led them to spend time in military barracks, whether they liked it or not. Osgood generally didn’t.

She was fluffing the pillow when she noticed Kate leaning against the door frame, looking at her. She wondered how long she had been there but didn’t dare ask. She hadn’t heard her, but it was no surprise on a carpeted floor. In the UNIT corridors her heels generally announced her, and made a number of people nervous. In the field, whenever the action called for it, the boots she wore were incredibly silent, and she made up for the lack of heels by appearing suspiciously fast behind people, something Osgood enjoyed watching, although it led her to be incredibly conscious of her surroundings.

Osgood took a look at her watch and smiled at Kate.

“Make yourself at home! I’ll go get your evil concoction!” She said gently. Kate nodded and her eyes followed Osgood until she was out of the flat. She was still leaning on the door frame.

Kate felt slightly uncomfortable at the idea of being in Osgood’s flat without her, but it also made her curious. She put her overnight bag by the side of the bed. She could see which side Osgood normally used from the pile of books on the nightstand, and went for the other side. She herself had had a tendency to migrate towards the middle of the bed since her last relationship. She promised herself she would try and keep herself from doing that.

The books on Osgood’s nightstand were really varied, but it all made sense when you knew her. The whole room was highly functional, and was still very ‘her’. Kate was very tempted to peer into the closet to see if her idea of Osgood’s clothes organisation matched reality. She pictured rows of assorted clothes neatly organised, possibly by regeneration.

She noticed there were few pictures. The few there were had no people in it. She recognised one of the tower. One was of a group of cats, for her family Kate supposed. It was odd, and yet it made sense. It was both comforting and non intrusive.

Kate was still watching the picture of the tower when Osgood came in. She made a show of keeping the pizza as far away from her as possible and Kate laughed, joining her in the kitchen.

“I like the idea, pictures of the places rather than the people.” Kate said. Osgood suddenly looked sad and Kate had a feeling she had struck a chord.

“It’s just… that way you don’t… You remember the people who are there, but also the one who are gone. And the new ones are here too. Like a constantly evolving group picture.” Osgood explained. Kate nodded ceremoniously.

“That’s a harsh thing to wake up to.” Kate pointed out softly.

“I don’t really see it when I wake up, I don’t really put my glasses on until breakfast. It’s mostly when I go to sleep.” She explained, looking in the distance. She didn’t see the sudden sadness in Kate’s eyes.

“Osgood.” She started. “Come here.” She added, softly. She wrapped her arms tightly around her, whispering in her ear that things were going to be alright. She felt Osgood nod against her shoulder.

“The pineapple is going to get cold.” Osgood said, her voice still strained as she took a step back, avoiding Kate’s eyes, not wanting to show just how affected she was. Kate followed her back to the kitchen and took an extra step when Osgood stopped, kissing the top of her head. She heard Osgood chuckle. Kate suddenly regretted her choice. Sweet and sour was clearly not the right taste for the evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coming up next: one famous trope, some angst, some fluff, and overall cuteness!


	11. Demons in the night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the third part, in which you'll see one well-known trope, with a good helping of angst, but I promise it's worth it! And there's pizza!  
> Don't worry, there's still a lot of fluff in there!

They sat face to face, the pizza between them, eating off the cardboard. Kate studied Osgood’s face as she tasted it. She could see doubt, then surprise, then puzzlement, and finally appreciation.

Kate grinned.

“Okay, I have to admit, it’s surprisingly complementary.” Osgood admitted, her mouth still half full. Kate extended her arm and stole a piece of pineapple off Osgood’s side. She looked so offended Kate couldn’t help but laugh.

“There’s more pineapple on your end!” Kate defended herself. Osgood shook her head.

“Remind me never to stand between you and pineapple!” Osgood replied.

“Well, I’d pick you anyway!” Kate said, taking a large bite of her pizza slice. Osgood looked up in surprise. Kate froze. There was tension in the air, and she wasn’t entirely sure where it was coming from. After a while Osgood smiled and blushed, looking down to the pizza and the hole left by Kate’s pillaging.

Kate tried to steal another piece but Osgood swatted her hand away playfully. Kate pouted, making Osgood smile, which was the point.

They ate in silence, Osgood nodding her approval at regular intervals while Kate smiled proudly.

“I have quite a few cookies left, and some chocolate mousse. Not enough for two, but if we eat it with the cookies…” Osgood’s sentence trailed off. She saw Kate’s eyes light up. She wasn’t sure whether eating anything more after that pizza was entirely reasonable, but she had learnt not to be reasonable around Kate.

Kate was surprised to see that Osgood had made the chocolate mousse herself, and reproached her not having ever told her she could. Osgood ended up leaving her most of it, the look of pure delight in Kate’s eyes well worth the sacrifice. The cookies met a similar fate.

“Tea?” Osgood offered. Kate laughed.

“Not if you want me to wake you up in the middle of the night after running into a wall on my way to the bathroom!” She replied. Osgood laughed.

They ended up sitting on the couch going through the next day together. Osgood could feel herself get tired, but didn’t want to show it, didn’t want the moment to end. She knew that, if it ended, when it ended, she’d have to kick Kate off the sofa to sleep there anyway. As she was thinking that, she felt Kate stretch next to her.

“Sleep?” She suggested. Osgood nodded. She remembered that Kate didn’t have any night clothes and realised that that was one thing she had not had the time to think about at length. She mentally went through her wardrobe. Pyjamas were out of the question, they’d look like shorts on Kate!

She encouraged Kate to follow her, playfully showing her where the bathroom was, and dug into a drawer. She recovered sweatpants that she thought should fit, and a UNIT t-shirt that had made its way home without her knowledge. Kate raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. Osgood fished out her usual, an oversized ‘I want to believe’ t-shirt, and pyjama bottoms with small drawings of earth on it. She blushed when Kate chuckled. She went to the bathroom first and Kate had already changed when she came back.

Osgood took one last look around the room, a couple things out of the wardrobe to make the sofa as bed-like as possible and closed the door behind her after saying goodnight. She made herself a nest on the sofa, trying to find a comfortable position, leaving her glasses close enough to reach for them but far enough that she wouldn’t risk stepping on them. She saw the light under her door turn off.

  
Kate soon realised it would be hard to sleep, although she felt exhausted. She was surrounded by Osgood’s things, Osgood’s smell, and what she had said about the tower picture still haunted her as it had been the last thing she had seen before turning the light off. She could hear Osgood tossing and turning and felt bad about having agreed to her sleeping on the couch. Kate knew the suggestion of them sharing a bed would have been too awkward, but now she sort of wished she could blame her sleeplessness on the bedding rather than her own overactive thoughts.  
  
She was staring at the ceiling, mentally going through her appointments the next day, when she heard a crash and a string of colourful swear words. She sat up and walked to the door, cracking it open.

“Osgood, are you alright?” She asked, concerned. She heard a chuckle.

“I rolled off the sofa.” Osgood replied, her voice echoing as much amusement as frustration, making Kate chuckle as well.

“Osgood…” Kate said

“Yes?”

“Come in here.” Kate asked, her voice a yawn away from an order. The only light came from behind Kate and Osgood couldn’t quite read her. She nodded, felt around for her glasses and grabbed her pillow, leaving the mess on the couch and floor to be sorted the next day. Kate was still at the door and stepped aside to let Osgood through. She let out a yawn and Kate realised she had done the right thing. They both needed some sleep, although she was fairly sure having Osgood this close to her wouldn’t be that conductive to prompt repose.

They slipped under the covers, each of them as close to the edge as they dared, their back to one another. Kate turned the light off and couldn’t resist the urge to smile. She could hear Osgood’s breathing, and she knew Osgood could hear hers. Osgood fell asleep quickly, and the sound helped soothe Kate. As the last tendril of sleep wrapped around her, a bad feeling crept in her, but it was too late.

 

Osgood had no idea how long it had been when she was brutally awoken. It took her a moment to reconnect the pieces of information her brain was firing at her, and she turned towards Kate’s side of the bed. What little light there was in the room allowed her to tell she was facing the door. She was clearly having a really bad nightmare. Osgood could feel how tensed she was. What she said didn’t make sense, Osgood wasn’t sure it was English, let alone from Earth. What little movements she seemed to make were protective ones, rolled around herself. She was shaking slightly and Osgood could feel her eyes well up.

There was a difference between looking at her in broad daylight and seeing her guilt, and witnessing her fighting her demons at night. She knew she couldn’t just stay there and watch, she couldn’t go back to sleep. She scooted closer as gently and slowly as she could manage. She put a hand on her shoulder lightly, progressively applying a little more pressure.

“Kate, it’s me, you’re going to be okay…” She started whispering, only stopping to draw breaths. She wasn’t sure what to do. After a while, realising it hadn’t helped, she pulled on Kate’s shoulder enough to make her move a little, and tentatively wrapped one arm around her waist, reaching out for her hands. She felt Kate relax, little by little, then all at once, the shaking replaced by silence sobbing that broke Osgood’s heart. She reached closer, holding her as tightly as she could given the awkwardness of their position.

“It’s okay, Kate. You’re safe.” She said, her voice a little louder.

“I’m sorry, I… I didn’t mean to wake you.” Osgood heard, the voice small, broken, making her strengthen her embrace a little more.

“Don’t be. You don’t have to fight this alone, Kate.” Osgood added, meaning it.

“Thank you.” It was just a whisper, but already more confident.

Osgood would never have thought she would see this side of Kate, the soft, broken side that she had known was in there somewhere. It felt like a privilege, and a curse as well, because now she knew both sides of the coin, and she knew Kate could defend herself against anything other than her own mind. She wondered whether Kate had known, inviting her to share the bed, that this would happen. How often did she have those nightmare?

She felt Kate turn around. She couldn’t see her face, and she really wanted to, needed to.

She reached over her, effectively pressing herself against her and reached for the light switch on Kate’s side. She could have gone for the one on her side, but it would have meant moving away, and she couldn’t do that, not just yet.

Osgood realised she was glad she hadn’t reached for her glasses. Kate was a little blurry, but she wasn’t sure she could have handled the details of the look in her eyes. She leaned her forehead against hers.

“Those happen a lot, don’t they?” Osgood asked gently. Kate nodded slightly. Osgood moved so she could wrap her arms around Kate, pulling her close. “I can help you fight them.” She whispered, not sure Kate could hear, not sure she wanted her to.

Kate pulled back a little and Osgood tensed, afraid she was pushing her away, but instead Kate kissed her. It was gentle, slow, and they both got a little lost in it.

“Shall we keep the light on?” Osgood asked when they broke for air. Kate nodded. Osgood smiled, kissing her again.

Asleep in each other’s arms, no nightmare came to plague them. The alarm, however, rang much earlier than they would have liked, and they were still tangled as they woke up, neither of them wanting to be the first to move. Osgood felt Kate to be more relaxed than she had ever seen her, but that might also have had something to do with having had proper sleep.

“Let’s.” Kate said. Osgood smiled brightly. The leader was back, and she was calling dibs on the bathroom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is as far as I've gotten! I'll definitely do at least one more chapter to deal with the 'after', but if there's any kind of facet to their relationship that you'd like to see, let me know!  
> (I don't really want to let this fic go, but I don't want it to drag on either.)  
> But yeah, any update might take more than a couple days ;)


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